Cross Country acquires On Assignment's healthcare division

Staffing firm Cross Country Healthcare, Boca Raton, Fla., expanded its workforce services and geographic footprint with the acquisition of Calabasas, Calif.-based On Assignment's allied healthcare division. On Assignment, meanwhile, announced an agreement to buy CyberCoders, a recruiting division of Cross Country.

Cross Country paid $28.7 million for the operating assets of the On Assignment unit, which includes 84 branch-based employees. The unit places professionals in more than 125 specialties from 23 branch offices.

According to a news release, managers in place will continue to lead the business after the acquisition, and its revenue is expected to grow to about $41 million for 2013, compared with $39.5 million in 2012.

“The acquisition of On Assignment's allied healthcare staffing division expands our local market presence and customer base, giving us the ability to leverage current and new client relationships, and it greatly expands our national footprint,” William Grubbs, Cross Country Healthcare president and CEO, said in the release.

On Assignment will pay $94 million for CyberCoders Holdings—a company that provides technology-based recruiting services for permanent placements—and also completed a previously reported acquisition of physician staffing firm Whitaker Medical.

CyberCoders, based in Irvine, Calif., has more than 200 recruiters that place middle- to senior-level professionals in information technology, healthcare and life sciences positions. The agreement between the two companies, signed on Nov. 25 and expected to close this month, calls for On Assignment to pay an additional $11 million based on future operating performance. According to company officials, CyberCoders will continue to operate under its own name but as a division of OnAssignment.

Whitaker Medical, Houston, which places physicians across a wide range of specialties in medical facilities throughout the U.S., is now part of OnAssignment's VISTA Staffing Solutions. OnAssignment paid $17.1 million in cash for the firm, with a stipulation that it may pay an additional $5 million depending on future performance.

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